1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to fishing lures, in particular to a fishing lure made of a cast of a natural bait encased in a clear castable material, and incorporating a sealed air chamber which causes it to swim upright in the water and by a simple adjustment can be made to either float at the surface, or dive at different desired depths required of different fishing situations.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the past, a wide variety of artificial fishing lures have been available. It has been the intention of most lures to attract and entice various species of game fish into striking and taking the lure as if it were its natural forage.
Common methods employed in the design and manufacture of prior art fishing lures traditionally have been to reproduce the appearance or imitate the live motion of the game species"" natural bait. Previous designs have been carved out of wood or molded from plastic materials in the shape of fish, frogs, shrimp, etc. and then painted to resemble these baits. Other designs have encased light reflective materials or photographs (Liley U.S. Pat. No. 3,528,189 and Shellenberg U.S. Pat. No. 4,803,793) inside of a clear plastic body.
Disadvantages of many of these prior art lures are that in the case of carved or molded lures, they can never be made to totally reproduce the detail of form found in nature. In the case of photographs, they can reproduce the clear detail and colors found in nature but only in two dimensions, even a three dimensional photograph appears as a line (i.e., the edge of the photograph) when viewed upon from the top of its vertical axis.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,803,793 issued to Schellenberg, III discloses a fishing lure includes a transparent hollow body having composite multiple image photographs of a fish disposed therein, in an attempt to simulate the appearance of a live fish. The photographs are each composed of at least two images that show the mouth, gills, and fins of the fish in different positions, so that one of the images is viewable from some angles, while the other image is viewable from other angles. A foam material is disposed within the hollow body to help retain the photographs along the inner wall of the hollow body. Thus, Schellenberg attempts to give the appearance that the photographed fish is actually breathing and swimming as the lure is moved through the water.
Several disadvantages are readily apparent with the Schellenberg device. As mentioned above, in the case of photographs, the clear detail and colors found in nature can only be reproduced in two dimensions. Even a three dimensional photograph appears as a line (i.e., the edge of the photograph) when viewed upon from the top of its vertical axis. Furthermore, the Schellenberg device is shaped generally like a baitfish and not specifically to any type of fish. Thus, the actual natural shape of the baitfish which has been photograph, is not represented in the body of the fishing lure. Additionally, photographs are known to fade when exposed to sunlight. This disadvantage is further emphasized by the fact that the photographs are submerged in the water. Lastly, the photographs of the Schellenberg lure are not permanently sealed, thus they are vulnerable to the elements of the water.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,529,642 issued to Vaughn et al, discloses a plug type lure which may be changed in weight and color as desired, to provide a changeable lure. The outer body member and the inner body member of Vaughn both consist of two pieces. Vaughn fails to allow the composite body member of the lure to be shaped specifically to resemble the natural representation of the fish. Though various colors may be interchanged, the shaped of the body member remains the same.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,820,269 issued to Rae discloses a dehydrated bait embodied in a transparent castable material. This would seem to have accomplished the task of producing a realistic looking lure. However, disadvantages here are that an actual baitfish must be used which would create obvious drawbacks in its manufacture and a needless waste of aquatic life. Another disadvantage is that the color of a living fish is determined as a function of life within the cell tissue of the skin of the fish. In the same way as a chameleon changes its color, color is determined by a delicate chemical balance within the cells that produce and contain pigment. By taking cues from internal and external stimuli, color is automatically adapted to changing water conditions, different degrees of daylight or darkness or even from causes such as aggression, stress or fear. In fact, many fish themselves can change color at will. Hence, once the fish dies, the delicate chemical pigment balance is lost. Also, even though pigments remain, they are dulled or different altogether from the original living color. Thus, within a short time the remaining pigments brown and fade as these natural pigments are unstable and no longer have the function of life within the cell tissues to alter these chemically active pigments or to replenish them when they break down.
As mentioned above, if the fish is dehydrated by methods such as freeze drying or dehydration solutions before it is encased, as Rae suggests, the tissue will deform and wrinkle. In the case of freeze drying or in the case of using dehydration solutions, the mucous membranes and mucous that surrounds the eyes, gills and most of the scales and skin of the fish are leached away or dried up by the solution and thus, creating an aberration from the original form of the bait. Rae also requires that a baitfish be killed each time a fishing lure is manufactured, as the actual baitfish is provided as the inner body portion of Rae.
Other prior art lures have incorporated not just the appearance of the bait, but also imitation of the motion of a live bait. Some of the better hydrodynamically designed lures are effective by creating vibrations in the water. Some lures are further enhanced by rattles which entice game fish to strike the lure.
In order to be able to fish at different depths, in an endless variety of trolling or casting situations, fisherman in the past have had to keep a large variety of lures on hand. To accomplish this purpose there have been art lures which have incorporated methods of adjustable depth control such as lips or spoons so as to force the lure down as it is pulled forward through the water. U.S. Pat. No. 1,200,135 to Reynolds, U.S. Pat. No. 2,944,393 to Poe, U.S. Pat. No. 3,874,109 to Peterson and U.S. Pat. No. 3,858,344 to Watts are examples of such designs. U.S. Pat. No. 2,598,012 to Prieur discloses an angled forward lure body with the line attached to the top of the lure and accomplishes diving by this same principal of being forced down when being pulled forward through the water as a result of is hydrodynamic shape. One problem with these types of lures is that various depths are achieved only as a function of various rates of retrieval of the lure.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,689,914 to Quinlan achieves variable buoyancy by allowing water into or out of a hollow flexible lure through a vent opening. U.S. Pat. No. 4,155,191 to Spivey discloses a hollow body having a slidable mass therein which in one position entraps air within the lure while in a second position allows water into the chamber. These lures can be made to either float on the surface or dive to the bottom, but are not accurately adjusted for fishing at intermediate depths.
Another method of achieving adjustable depth control has been by changing the density of the lure by using a detachable weight as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,205,60 to Knapton or by utilizing a selection of detachable hooks of different weights, as discloses in U.S. Pat. No. 4,229,899 to McGahee. This system achieves variable depth control but is undesirable due to the need to disassemble and reassemble the lure.
Another problem plaguing the side-to-side vibratory motion of these designs is the ability to place the lure at the same depth as the intended game fish are swimming or feeding. Most prior art lures, as a function of design, are made to either float on or near the surface, sink to the bottom, or operate at a predetermined depth in the water which has been determined and set during manufacture and is fixed in the density, center of gravity and hydrodynamic shape of the lure itself. Therefore, the lure will only operate properly at the depth for which it was designed.
Therefore, a need exists for a bait/lure which more closely resembles the appearance and colors of live bait over the attempts of the prior art and which can be effectively and easily adjusted to operate at different desired depths. It is, therefore, to the effective resolution of the aforementioned problems and shortcomings that the present invention is directed.
The present invention overcomes the limitations of the prior art by the process of obtaining a natural bait from as fresh a source as possible and then casting the entire body with a flexible rubber form such as latex or silicone rubber. In lieu of casting the entire body, part of the bait, or a section of the body such as the head or scales or tail section of the original bait may be casted, as desired. The cast becomes the first portion of the body member of the fishing lure. This rubber cast which has been imprinted with the contours of the baitfish can be used to cast replicas of the original bait. Alternatively, casts can be made which produce different section of the baitfish or texture from the surface of the rubber mold or rigid mold.
In either embodiment, the present invention eliminates the needless killing of baitfish each time a fishing lure is manufactured. After the cast or mold of the baitfish is constructed, further fishing lures are constructed from the cast or molds, and not through killing additional baitfish.
For preserving the natural living colors of the bait being used, the baitfish cast (first portion of the body member of the fishing lure) can be painted in its vibrant natural colors and can be matched almost perfectly by the synthetic pigment paint technology presently available. Studying and reproducing the colors of the different species of bait under different conditions, such as day or nighttime colors or the colors a bait displays when under stress, in fear or showing weakness, may further entice a game fish to strike the lure. After the cast replica is painted, the cast is permanently sealed and permanently encased in a clear larger cast which hydrodynamically correct and balanced so as to swim through the water in a natural appearing motion. The clear larger cast represent the second portion of the composite body member of the fishing lure.
Furthermore, the present invention also utilizes an improved method of achieving adjustable depth control. The subject invention can be adjusted so as to change its buoyancy by applying the same principal as a living fish does to accomplish this end by compressing air contained within it""s air bladder. The mechanical equivalent is achieved by compression of air within a sealed air chamber so as to change the fluid displacement volume of the lure, which in effect changes its buoyancy within the water. The lure can not only be made to float or dive, but with a slight adjustment by the user, can be made to operate at desired intermediate depths. This aspect of the present invention can also be utilized in conjunction with conventional fishing lures presently in use as well as being able to be incorporated within the body of newly manufactured fishing lures.
Accordingly, the primary object of the present invention is to reproduce in an artificial bait as much as possible the appearance in the water of a live bait.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a fishing lure which as much as possible has the appearance in the water of a live bait.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a fishing lure which can easily achieve various depth levels.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a fishing lure which is relatively low in cost and easy to manufacture.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein set forth, by way of illustrating and example, certain embodiments of this invention. The drawings constitute a part of this specification and include exemplary embodiments of the present invention and illustrate various objects and features thereof.